The present invention relates to handling rainwater collected from the roofs of buildings and more particularly to guttering fixtures.
Standard guttering is fixed to the eaves of a building to collect rainwater falling on and directed by the roof of a building. The guttering is normally provided in sections which are joined together and supported by brackets. At selected intervals or at the ends of a length of guttering, comprising a number of sections, a downpipe is provided to allow the collected rainwater to fall for subsequent collection or disposal. It is known that from time to time guttering and downpipes get blocked by assorted debris ranging from leaves, roof moss and portions of birds nests to litter which has been carried on the wind. Significant damage can be caused to buildings when rainwater, which is normally directed through the downpipe, overflows the guttering and washes down the walls and/or windows of the building. When a gutter backs up and fills with rainwater it will overflow at any low point and brackets or bracket fixings may be affected over time. More particularly, the affect of excessive rainwater flowing down the walls of a building, particularly where it is concentrated at one point, may cause significant or irreparable damage to the building. Furthermore, as an overflowing gutter carries a significant weight of water, any weaknesses in the gutter joints, bracket fixings or soffit will be exploited.
It is well established that gutter maintenance is not regularly conducted on either modern or historic buildings. Normally, maintenance is only conducted when a problem or fault becomes apparent. One difficulty is that it is often difficult to ascertain when a gutter is leaking as it can be difficult to distinguish overflowing rainwater from a gutter from rainwater which impinges the wall of a building. Similarly, overflowing rainwater may travel along the underside of a gutter channel until it reaches the downpipe and the overflowing water simply washes down the outside of the downpipe.
It is an object of the present invention to firstly provide a means for safely handling overflowing water in a blocked gutter.
It is further an object of the present invention to seek to alleviate the degradation of buildings and particularly historic structures from the effects of increasingly acidic rainwater.
Finally, it is an object of the present invention to seek to provide a maintenance indicator to draw to the attention of those responsible the fact that gutter maintenance is required.
The present invention provides an overflow chute for guttering, the chute comprising an elongate member having a substantially U-shaped cross-section and including a weir or barrier therein intermediate an overflow spout and an inlet adapted to engage a section of guttering.
The weir or barrier is formed so as to prevent water travelling along the chute to the outlet spout in normal operating conditions.
Preferably, the height of the weir is selected so that under normal operating conditions, rain or waste water follows its normal outlet path within the guttering. The weir height is such that should the normal outlet path become blocked or the volume of water is greater than the capacity of the guttering, excess water breaches the weir and is directed outwardly from the building to which the guttering is attached.
Advantageously, the inlet includes a length of guttering so that the overflow chute may be interposed between standard guttering sections.
In one arrangement, the overflow chute has a T-shaped profile in which the spar of the T comprises a length of guttering and the leg of the T comprises the overflow chute. An L section profile is also considered for terminating a guttering run.
In a preferred arrangement, the overflow chute is disposed adjacent a downpipe. Advantageously, the overflow chute inlet includes a junction for at least one section of guttering and the downpipe.
While it should be understood that the overflow chute may be self-supporting, it is preferred that a support bracket is provided, the bracket being fixed adjacent the overflow spout at one end and to any one of the downpipe, wall or soffit at the other end.
It will be appreciated that a guttering system incorporating at least one overflow chute of the type described hereinabove constitutes a means for attenuating deleterious degradation of buildings, particularly historical or architecturally important structures due to rainwater.
In a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a maintenance indicator for guttering comprising a gutter overflow chute of the type described hereinabove.